Young Volcanoes
by pirate-and-the-princess
Summary: At the start of their fifth year, neither Lily and the Marauders had any idea of the changes and events that would shape and befall them in the coming years. They were a group of idealistic students, wild and reckless in the safety of Hogwarts' halls. (Lily/James fic)
1. Chapter 1

The loud chatter of excited witches and wizards echoed down the old streets, amplified by the sounds of footsteps on cobblestone. The smell of assorted foods, potions and magical creatures filled the air, creating an odd but pleasurable experience for the senses. Standing at the end of Diagon Alley was a fifteen year old girl with a shock of red hair and bright green eyes, scanning the crowd bustling about before her.

The pallid, stringy boy beside her couldn't look away from his friend, "You have that look on your face _every_ time we come here."

Lily Evans turned to her friend, a bright smile on her face. "And it is just as wonderful _every_ time we come. Come on, Sev, let's go to Gringotts." She made her way through the crowd, admiring all the shops as they passed. "Sev, I really need to get a new cauldron- you remember what happened to the last one, don't you?"

Her friend gave a small smile, "How could I forget? You lent it to that imbecile Pettigrew before the Potions final exam."

Lily laughed, covering her hands over her face for the slightest moment, " _Such_ a disaster. I was devastated. Fortunately Professor Slughorn had an extra."

Severus scoffed, "You _are_ one of his favorites."

Lily gave him a smirk, "You would be too if you wiped that sullen expression off your face once in a while. You're better in Potions than I'll ever be." The dark haired boy looked away, a light tinge of pink on his otherwise sallow face. Lily chuckled at his lack of response, as they passed Madam Malkin's. Gringotts loomed before them, and Lily suppressed the urge to rub her hands together in excitement.

When she was younger, her parents used to take their family to the Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach in Norfolk during the summers, but none of the rides could even compare to Gringotts. They walked inside, Lily waving to a few acquaintances as she and Severus stood in line for a goblin to assist them. Despite how delighted she was to see a few of her Slug Club cohorts, it didn't escape her notice how none of them even acknowledged her friend beside her. Though, attempting to get Severus to be more social was a losing battle. It simply wasn't in his nature.

* * *

About an hour later, after exchanging muggle money and adding more to her bank account, Lily and Severus stepped out into the sunlit cobblestone street. "Where first?" Lily asked, attempting to smooth down her hair (which had gotten out of control during the Gringotts cart ride).

Her friend didn't answer and was distractedly looking at the alleyway across the road from them, which made a sharp turn into darker, less-welcoming territory. A group of familiar Slytherin boys from their year were gathering by its edge, one of the most brutish looking ones, Flavius Avery, cupped his hands and shouted at them. "Snape! Get over here!"

Lily pursed her lips, looking at Severus expectantly. Green eyes met black in a silent battle that only lasted mere seconds, before Severus looked away. "I'll meet you at Madam Malkins in a half an hour, I promise," He murmured without even meeting her eye and shuffled off across the street, joining the group of boys that gave Lily chills.

Severus hung out with a very unpleasant crowd who enjoyed the less wholesome side of magic. They tormented muggleborns such as herself, though Lily usually managed to escape their ire, fortunately. But their ideology was frightening and Lily suspected they harbored dangerous resentments and a fanatical desire to join He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. While she didn't think Severus harbored this desire, she couldn't help but notice the influence his friends had on him. It began with the occasional disparaging remark on a particular muggle contraption, which was usually acceptable since many magical things functioned better. However, towards the end of the last year especially, Severus had said some things about muggles as a whole that simply made Lily uneasy. He always said that she was an exception, but that hardly made it acceptable.

And every time she attempted to speak to him about it, he barely listened or dodged the subject. It was beginning to become a problem Lily could not ignore, especially when all of her friends constantly questioned her association with a Death Eater 'groupie'. Frowning as she walked down the alleyway, the redhead made her way into Madam Malkin's.

She had certainly grown a fair bit since last year, and had a little more curvature going on than before, so new robes were certainly in order. Even more so since her love for potion making had ruined a few of her older robes. "New year, new robes." She muttered to herself, attempting to push out the feelings of irritation and hurt from Severus' abandonment.

She browsed the racks of robes, touching the fabrics as she went. Ideally, she needed a new set of black robes with a red trim, though she couldn't help but eye the flashier dress robes. What would she ever need them for? Her hand rested on the silky fabric of a light, pastel green dress robe with a simple white trim.

"That would look lovely on you, dear." Lily jumped, her heart beating rapidly as she fumbled for a smile. An older woman, with a kind wrinkled face and unruly white hair (that she'd clearly attempted to unsuccessfully pin down), stood at her side with a few robes draped over her arm.

"Thank you," Lily beamed, feeling her face warm at the compliment. She examined the price tag discreetly and sighed with relief, thank goodness for all those hours watching the Baker's children this summer. "I think I will take it." She glanced at the robes in the woman's arms, noting several black robes with red hems. "Are those Gryffindor robes?" The question came out her mouth before she realized it.

The woman smiled, her brown eyes seemed to light up. "My son is in Gryffindor, he's beginning his fifth year. He's so talented, my son, such a delightful boy." Lily had the sense that this mother could talk at length about her son, a trait she found rather endearing. Clearly her son was well loved. The woman paused and gave Lily a look, "Are you a Gryffindor?" Lily nodded, hearing the door to the shop open and close behind them. "Oh, there you are James- I was beginning to worry you were up to trouble with Sirius."

The laugh behind her made Lily subconsciously tense, and she quickly released the robe she'd been gripping lest she wrinkle the fabric. "Trouble? We _never_ get into any kind of trouble, Mum." James Potter came up beside Lily, giving his mother that classic pompous Potter grin. Lily glanced between mother and son, unable to understand how such a sweet woman could have raised such a self-absorbed, irritating, bullying-

"Evans?" Lily looked up at James' hazel eyes, examining her through his stupidly lopsided glasses. She felt her heart stop in her chest, only to restart at a rapid, uncomfortable pace.

Mrs. Potter glanced at her son and then at Lily with a bright smile, "James- do you know this young lady?"

He nodded slowly, his hand quickly rising to run through his hair. "Evans- erm, we're in the same year."

"That is simply wonderful." Unaware of the developing tension and awkwardness, Mrs. Potter handed her son the pile of robes in her arms. "Take these to the back, go get fitted. And _where_ is Sirius? He needs to get fitted as well," She looked at Lily, "These boys grow at least several inches _every_ year, honest."

Lily attempted a smile, wishing this entire situation would go away. "That they do," She responded. _Though I'm sure the weight of their giant egos weighs them down considerably,_ she thought darkly, picking out the light green dress robe. "It was lovely meeting you, Mrs. Potter." Lily gave the woman her most genuine smile before quickly turning to James, with one significantly less genuine, "I'll see you at school." With that she excused herself and went across the shop to look for robes for classes. She made sure to take a long time, keeping an eye on the fitting area in the back. Once the Potters had left, with Lily avoiding any and all eye contact, she went to the back to get fitted.

As she was being fitted for the dress robe, Severus finally came into the shop. He had several bags, some were distinctly clinking as he moved. "You bought a lot." Lily's voice was measured, given that she had last seen him heading down Knockturn Alley.

He cleared his throat, "I figured you'd need more time. I got some robes." He indicated one of the bags, no doubt from the second-hand robe shop at the other end of Diagon Alley. The witch fitting Lily gave Severus a look of disdain, as if the concept of buying robes from any other store was unfathomable. Severus eyed Lily, something she pretended not to notice. "You look… this robe…"

Lily couldn't help but smile, his words were failing him again. This happened to her friend at times, a trait she couldn't help but love. "I need _something_ nice for Slughorn's gatherings." Granted, Lily's closest female friend, Imogen Peakes, probably had more than enough dress robes to clothe all of Gryffindor's girls. Lily would always have options as long as Imogen was around.

"I saw Potter and his friends." Severus almost spat, his face transformed by a scowl.

Lily held her breath for a moment, she didn't need a reminder of James and his friends. Severus always got so riled up at the mere mention of them, though Lily could hardly blame him. The Marauders, as James and his friends called themselves (such a pretentious name, Lily thought), constantly picked on Severus. "Sev, they're just a bunch of idiots. Arrogant, attention-seeking idiots, no less."

Severus huffed, his thick hair barely moving from his breath. "I don't understand why they're so popular."

Lily's eyes softened. _Severus._ "Popularity isn't everything."

He looked at her and quietly scoffed, "You wouldn't understand."

Her eyebrows came together and Lily opened her mouth to respond, but the door to the shop slammed open and a gang of four rowdy, obnoxious boys strolled in. "All right, I'm here!" Sirius Black, leading the group, loudly announced his arrival. "Where's your Mum, Potter?"

James laughed, "She's having a drink with an old friend at the Leaky Cauldron." _Oh dear_. Lily thought, staring at Severus, whose already pale face seemed so devoid of color it was turning _green_. Fortunately, the witch doing her fitting had finished. "Sev, this way." Lily collected her robes and walked him behind several clothing racks, attempting to make it to the cashier as quickly as possible.

As they paid, fortunately out of sight from the Marauders, the boys' voices carried across the shop easily. "Who'd you say you saw here?" Sirius' voice was distracted as there was the sound of moving cloth.

James' voice responded, "Evans- Lily Evans."

There was a slight pause, Lily couldn't tell if it was because Sirius couldn't remember who she was or if this was some kind of major news, but Lily was relieved to have finished her purchase. With a quick 'thank you' to the witch at the counter, she and Severus basically bolted out of the shop. Once outside, Lily let out a laugh; Severus was less amused, however. "Goodness, you missed it Sev- I accidentally met Potter's mum, and he was _so_ different around her. Like a scared little boy."

Severus cleared his throat, "You met his _mum_?" His voice had gone slightly high, and he cleared his throat again.

Lily nodded, "She's very sweet. I hardly know how _he_ turned out the way he did." She smirked, "You should have seen his face, Sev. I've never seen him so uncomfortable before."

* * *

 **I've been dying to write a Jily fic for years (since JK probably never will), especially since I feel like there was never a great explanation of how Lily could go from hating to loving James. I'm attempting to put my own spin on what might have occurred. There will be lots of OC's based off of characters that _might_ have gone to school around the same time, I'm trying to keep to the timelines as best as possible. Review/like if you enjoy!**


	2. Chapter 2

The rainy countryside flashed by as the Hogwarts Express pressed on towards its destination. Looking away from his reflection in the window, James Potter regarded his friends. "I've never noticed how fit Evans was," He mused, propping his long legs on the seat across from him, forcing Peter to move over to the side.

Remus looked up from the book he had been reading, "Those glasses of yours must not be working anymore then, mate." Wiggling his brown eyebrows, the werewolf resumed reading his book.

James shot his friend a look, "It's hard to notice her when she's around all of Snivelus' greasy hair."

Sitting by the window (attempting to catch a chocolate frog with his mouth), Sirius gave his best friend a quick glance, "Are we still talking about her? Merlin, did she slip you a love potion or something?"

"It would have worn off by now, regretfully," Remus muttered, his expression unmoving save for the slightest twitch at his lips. Peter snickered at his side, taking an Every-Flavored bean and popping it in his mouth.

James froze in anticipation of what flavor the bean was, a slow grin spreading across his face as Peter coughed. "Boogeys?" James guessed with a snicker as Peter shook his head.

"Moldy cheese." Peter grimaced, finishing around in his bag for a bean that looked more appetizing.

James wrinkled his nose, "Urgh, nasty."

By the window, Sirius had finally caught the chocolate frog and scarfed it down with a wolfish grin. Remus raised his eyebrows at the display, "And _I'm_ the one whose part wolf."

"Speaking of your furry problem," James began, wiggling his eyebrows, he clapped his hands, "I got the books- the ones we needed!" The three other boys perked up, matching grins on all their faces. "I think we'll be able to pull it off _this_ year."

Remus bit his lower lip before speaking, "Do you think it will work?"

Sirius nodded at him, "We were so close to the full transformation just the other day…"

The werewolf shook his head, "I meant- what if it doesn't keep you safe?"

James waved him off, "Then we become werewolves with you. I rather fancy the idea of skipping school once a month-"

"-I'm not exactly _enjoying_ myself, when I go," Remus replied sardonically as he resumed reading, though a small smile developed on his face nonetheless.

Leaning back in his seat, James regarded his studious friend with a warm smile. He knew that Remus most certainly did _not_ enjoy the full moon, which was why he and Sirius had thought up this grand plan of theirs. It would no doubt trump all their previous exploits, though it would have to remain anonymous due to its sheer illegality. If it _worked_ and they succeeded in becoming Animagi, however, the risks would certainly be worth it.

His thoughts quickly drifted at the sound of some voices coming down the corridor, familiar female voices. Bolting up as if struck by lightning, James quickly ruffled his hair and examined his appearance in the window. Alarmed by the sudden movement, Sirius did the same.

Their compartment door slid open and two very pretty girls stood in the doorway. The one on the right was tall and thin, with dark skin and hair that was always impeccably styled. James suspected Imogen Peakes used his father's invention, Sleekeasy's, to get her hair so perfect. Beside her was Mary MacDonald, who was significantly shorter, with wide shoulders and a tanned heart shaped face. Her golden blond hair was always pulled back, as if she was ready to play Quidditch at any moment- though knowing Mary, she probably was.

The taller girl spoke first, "Hello boys!" She smiled at them, reminding James why he spent the greater part of his fourth year seeking her attention. Unfortunately, contending with Sirius never gave him much of a chance, something James noticed as Imogen's brown eyes slid over to his taller friend. Sirius winked at her, causing Imogen's dark skin to redden.

Ignoring the silent exchange going on between her friend and Sirius, Mary addressed Remus in her think Glaswegian accent: "Lupin, shouldn't you be with the Prefects?"

Imogen pouted, "Yes, Lily left us to go there. It's been so miserable without her."

Remus gestured at the boys around him, "My time is probably best served watching these fools."

Sirius looked at the girls with a barely serious expression, "He's got his hands full as you can see, we're absolutely up to no good." Again with a look at Imogen that James wished he could replicate, the girl practically swooned.

Mary, still oblivious or consciously ignoring what was going on, turned to James: "Did you hear McClaggen is our captain?" She laughed as James groaned.

"Tiberius is going to work us dry-"

Mary wasn't having it, "-He's so talented though-"

"-And a bit of a slave-driver, I must say." Despite his harsh words, he was grinning. Tiberius had taken him under his wing when James joined the team years ago, and Mary was right, Tiberius was _very_ talented. "I can't wait to get on the pitch, punch a few Slytherins- all in the name of Quidditch, of course."

"Of _course_." Remus responded, closing his book and standing up. "I might as well go see the other prefects," He nodded at the girls as he passed by, ignoring the jeers from his friends.

Peter moved over on his seat and Imogen hardly hesitated in sitting between him and Sirius, whilst Mary sat down next to James. None of the boys minded the new company, especially not Sirius who immediately launched into a lively retelling of a summer adventure for his apt listener. "Did you have a nice summer, Mary?" Peter asked, his voice slightly higher than it normally was.

She nodded giving Peter a smile that made the boy blush so hard, James was impressed that Mary didn't skip a beat. Granted, she was possibly one of the best humored girls he knew. Last year the wind had suddenly shifted at one of the practices, knocking Mary's bludger right into her nose. Despite her face being covered in blood and in obvious pain, the girl waved it off and managed to walk herself to Madame Pomfrey's as if nothing was wrong.

Unfortunately for Peter, Mary was quietly dating Bilius Weasley, a sixth year who was the team's seeker. The couple were open about their relationship with their teammates, but rather private with everyone else.

"Mary," James began, regarding her with his hazel eyes, "Is Evans seeing anyone?"

The girl blinked several times, her dark blue eyes flicking from Peter, to Imogen (who wasn't paying attention) and back to James. She raised one of her eyebrows, "Not that I'm aware…" She squinted at Potter, but said nothing more.

James nodded, more to himself. Ever since that short encounter at Madame Malkin's, he'd been unable to shake the image of those green eyes from his mind. They haunted him, making him more uncomfortable than he'd ever been. Girls didn't make him nervous, but Lily Evans was quickly becoming a different story.

It wasn't as if he'd never noticed her: they were in the same house _and_ year. She had that hair and her face had always been quite lovely. _And_ she was also rather brilliant in Potions and Charms, so she clearly wasn't thick by any means… Remus was right, clearly his glasses had been broken this whole time.

"Though, James," Mary's voice cut into his thoughts, causing the fifteen year old to all but jump. "You _do_ know she's good friends with Snape, right?" Even the mere _mention_ of the name made James' blood boil. _Stupid Severus Snape,_ he thought acidly, replaying in his mind several nasty incidents with the slimy Slytherin. While James might not have been the most innocent in his interactions with Snape (far from innocent, to be honest), he could not sit idly by when Snape and his Slytherin friends were experimenting with Dark Magic on muggleborns. It was disgusting and his parents taught him better than that. James knew Lily was a muggleborn, and frankly he couldn't comprehend how she could be close friends with someone so clearly against her ancestry.

There was a slight pang of an unfamiliar emotion in James' chest and it only intensified as he thought about Snape, with his greasy hair and ugly nose, even being within two feet of Lily. What was so great about him anyway? _Nothing_ was great about Severus Snape… except maybe his Potion skills. _Damn it._ James thought, subconsciously crossing his arms as his lower lip slowly protruded into a slight pout. _I'm_ miserable _with Potions._ At least, miserable compared to both Lily and Snape.

Whilst deep in thought, James hadn't noticed that Mary and Peter had continued to talk without him, and well, Imogen and Sirius were on another planet completely. He stood up and excused himself, hoping to go get some advice from a more knowledgeable source (since Sirius was preoccupied). He nodded at acquaintances as he passed, tossed a few winks at a gaggle of Ravenclaw girls, and sternly informed a group of younger Slytherins to "move along" before finally finding the compartment he was looking for.

The loud chatter behind the closed compartment door was very familiar, "Kingsley- for Merlin's sake!" Came the bubbly laugh of Hestia Jones, one of the Gryffindor's sixth years.

"Aye, McGonagall would right murder you!" Came the gasping laughs of seventh year Tiberius McClaggen, "Merlin, I'm cryin'."

James began to push the compartment door open and had it open enough to make eye contact with a delighted Kingsley Shacklebolt, who began to exclaim his name. However, before either James or Kingsley could say anything, there was a terribly loud bang from James' right.

Pain exploded across James' body as he was thrown down the corridor and against the door leading to the next carriage, causing his glasses to fall off his face and his head to slam against the door painfully. " _Accio glasses!_ " The deep, grating voice of Flavius Avery echoed down the corridor and James' glasses soared down the hallway. Unable to see much of anything, James attempted to compose himself and get up off the floor.

But without his glasses, his depth perception and general ability to accurately focus on anything was abysmal. There was a snap and James felt the two pieces of his now deeply shattered glasses get thrown at his head.

There was a roar from the compartment that Kingsley Shaklebolt, Hestia Jones, Tiberius McClaggen and (likely) Bilius Weasley had all been in, and within moments jets of colored light were flying across the compartment. James ducked, quickly grabbing the remnants of his glasses and muttering the repairing charm, shoving them on his nose as if nothing had happened. Avery and his mates (Snape was surprisingly absent from this collection of cretins) stupidly had turned their backs to James, and he quickly sent off some disarming charms at them, catching two wands in his left arm.

Before James even had a moment to thank his Quidditch reflexes for catching the wands, the door behind him slammed open (nearly clipping his back) and an army of prefects entered. Everyone in the corridor froze: Shaklebolt with his wand raised at Avery, who was now sporting a set of antlers; McClaggen's nose was bleeding uncontrollably; two of the Slytherins (Wilkes and Rosier) were wandless and with slowly expanding heads; and James stood with his wand in his right hand, and two others in his left.

" _What_ is going on in here?" A sharp, demanding female voice echoed down the suddenly silent corridor. " _James_ \- I should have _known,_ turn around!"

James grimaced, he really didn't want to. Taking a big breath, he summoned his most brilliant smile and ever so slowly turned around to face the Head Girl, Alice Blackburn. "Alice!" He chirped, "Now I know this _seems_ bad-"

Alice's brown eyes narrowed, "-Don't 'Alice' me, _James_." Behind her, James saw several prefects from assorted years and houses, including (much to his dismay) Remus and Lily. The former was shaking his head slowly, whilst the latter simply looked revolted. Her frown and drawn eyebrows caused a slight sting in James' chest, and the uncomfortable warming feeling on his face only solidified his complete and utter embarrassment.

"You couldn't even wait until we were _off_ the train? Merlin!" She grabbed the two wands he'd taken and marched past him, flicking her wand several times as she attempted to undo all the jinxes and curses. "Shaklebolt and McClaggen, I expected better from both of you." _But not me?_ James thought indignantly, though he couldn't help but smirk. _No, of course not._

After a quick discussion with all the parties involved, Alice informed them that they would all have to discuss what occurred with Professor McGonagall. The looks of collective despair seemed to give the Head Girl some satisfaction.

* * *

 **There was never a strict timeline for Alice & Frank Longbottom, Kingsley Shaklebolt and all of those around so I took a few liberties. I figure Alice might have been a family friend of the Potters, hence why they're on first-name basis. More actual Lily & James to come, I'm trying to set up the story. Review/favorite if you like!**


	3. Chapter 3

Lily rejoined her friends once the train arrived at the station. Imogen was quick to fuss over her, tucking away any fly-away hair strands Lily might have possessed. "I'm so happy to see you!" Imogen practically blubbered, tears in her eyes. Despite her imposing height and pristine appearance, Imogen was frequently in tears either from joy or sadness.

"Merlin, Imogen," Lily laughed, giving her friend a tight hug.

Sniffling, Imogen gingerly wiped the tears away from her face, "I'm sorry… I'm sorry…"

Mary grinned at the two of them, standing on her tip-toes to sling and arm around both of their shoulders, "Nice to be back, isn't it girls?"

Attempting to ignore the incredible weight of Mary's muscular arms on her shoulders, Lily looked up at the castle in the distance and smiled, "It always is."

The three of them chatted excitedly as they walked over to the carriages that would bring them to the castle. Apparently, Mary and her boyfriend had vacationed with her family in Cornwall this summer. "My mum _loves_ Bilius." Mary gushed, unable to contain the fact that she too felt that way about him. And why shouldn't she? Bilius was wonderful: funny (not maliciously), studious (but not _too_ serious), and generous to a fault.

Imogen's summer had been very eventful. By the end of their conversation, Lily was certain her friend had dated at _least_ three different boys in her village. "How do you even have time for all that?" Lily asked, simply amazed at her friend's romantic abilities.

With a coy smile, Imogen winked at her red-haired friend as they approached their carriage, "Let me show you." As Lily and Mary climbed in, she turned and called out to a group of boys wandering up behind them. "Boys- we've got room!" Lily turned in her seat to see who Imogen had invited for the ride to the castle, and quickly felt a mixture of emotions at the three boys joining them.

First to sit down, across from Mary, was her boyfriend Bilius Weasley. He greeted Lily with a smile and a nod, only to then reach out and give his girlfriend's hand a quick squeeze. Next came Lily's current favorite, James Potter, who sat across from her. Somehow emotionally recovered from the embarrassing incident on the train, he seemed to be full of laughs as he climbed aboard. Though, this seemed to halt as soon as he made eye contact with her. For possibly the first time since she'd ever encountered James, he seemed to be near frozen on the spot. It was incredibly odd.

Of course, she did not care about his strange behavior as soon as Tiberus McClaggen sat down across from Imogen."'Ello ladies!" His voice boomed, his brilliant smile practically blinding Lily. Even with the dried blood on his robes from the duel on the train, he was still so handsome.

Beside her, Lily felt Imogen shift in her seat ever so slightly. "Got the bleeding to stop, McClaggen?" Imogen quipped with a laugh.

He nodded, pushing his golden-blond curls out of his eyes. "Aye, took Frank Longbottom a solid twenty minutes to figure it out." He laughed, wrapping an arm around a near-silent James, who looked like a doll in Tiberus' massive arms, and squeezing the younger boy close. "Thanks to this one, Rosier and Wilkes lost their wands before they could do worse."

James smiled, his pride almost made Lily roll her eyes. "I can't believe you started a fight on the train," She said, half-smiling despite herself at the boldness of the boys. It was so stupid.

At that, the boy across from her perked up. "It was _self-defense_. They attacked me unprovoked." James insisted, his hazel eyes wide and imploring.

"For once," Lily scoffed, despite herself.

Tiberus let out a laugh that sounded more like a hoot, "Go easy on my boy, Evans. It really was this time." _Emphasis on the words 'this time'_ , Lily thought but decided it was a lost cause. To be fair, knowing the Slytherins that had been involved… she could easily believe it had actually been self-defense.

"Who used the expanding head charm?" Mary's voice could hardly contain her glee. She had a deep-seated hatred for those Slytherins, due to their viciousness on the Quidditch pitch.

Tibrus wiggled his eyebrows and then pointed to himself, "Did good work, didn't I?" He released James from his grip and tapped Lily with his foot, "Don't tell McGonagall, eh prefect?"

As they walked into the castle, the group of six unconsciously split into pairs as they moved, with Mary and Bilius in deep discussion at the head of the group and Imogen and Tiberus trailed behind. This, unfortunately, left Lily walking alongside James Potter. She took a deep breath, giving him a sideways glance. Perhaps he'd changed over the summer? Perhaps James had grown up a little? Lily liked to give people the benefit of the doubt, but the Marauders made it so difficult.

Though, Remus had proven not all of them were terrible. Even Peter was quite sweet sometimes, when he wasn't acting like a sneak. "So you're a prefect." James' voice cut through Lily's thoughts, and she blinked at him a few times in confusion.

"Is that a question?"

He laughed, albeit nervously, his hand ruffling the back of his hair. "More of an observation."

"Astute." Lily said with raised eyebrows, turning away from him to focus on the approaching entrance doors.

Lily heard a soft chuckle beside her, "I try." As much as she tried to conceal it, a slight smirk developed on her lips. James was acting so oddly that she couldn't help it. It was almost as if his entire personality had been overhauled, leaving this nervous, almost _sweet_ teenager behind.

After moments of silence, Lily decided perhaps she was being a touch unfair. Perhaps James Potter could be saved from a life of being a prat. "How were… your holidays?" Lily asked after a slightly loud inhale (that sounded suspiciously like a sigh). She glanced to her side, his eyes snapped right to her face- causing her heart to skip a beat. For all of his faults (and there were so many), James was really not _terrible_ to look at. If only his personality could match.

He smiled, again Lily felt something in her chest that she decided to ignore, "Sirius stayed with me for most of it, we went on some adventures." The tone of his voice suggested that many of these adventures were probably not safe. Or legal. "What did you do, Evans? Read all summer?" He winked at her, and Lily tried to fight the feeling of indignation in her gut.

"Har har, Potter." She scoffed, "I only read _half_ of the time, obviously- I spent the other half polishing my new badge."

"Touche," He laughed, the lack of malice in it almost made Lily feel uncomfortable… but not necessarily in a bad way. His opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off.

"Lily!" Imogen turned around (her arm lightly touching McClaggen's arm), "Make sure you sit with us for supper! Tiberus has the _funniest_ story to tell you about some kelpies he saw outside of Glasgow."

James laughed, almost voicing Lily's thoughts: "I can't help but wonder how _funny_ a story about kelpies really is."


End file.
